Submitted by Mike Shea, HKHS Girls Soccer Coach
(September 27, 2022) —The Haddam-Killingworth High School Girls Soccer team was supposed to play at home against Lyme-Old Lyme on Thursday, September 22, 2022, but due to the heavy rain throughout the day, the location changed to Lyme-Old Lyme High School. L-OLHS recently had a turf field installed for their soccer program. The rain, wind and cool front did not stop the two teams from competing in a very close game.
Freshman Payton Rich continues to have a big impact for HK with her defensive play this season and, in this game, she was challenged often and rose to each occasion. Captain Caroline Conte also continues to lead the defensive line, and her leadership has been very beneficial to the role that Rich has played. Defender Amanda Cassidy played her best game to date, setting the tempo not only for the defensive line but also the entire team.
The attack of Lyme-Old Lyme was very good, their transition to the attack was quick. They did manage to get shots on goal, but HK goalkeeper Vyv Laurenza made four key saves to shut out Lyme-Old Lyme. This was Laurenza’s second shutout of the season. HK came out with a strong first half, generating a shot on goal quickly. The Cougars maintained the pressure in the opening 40 minutes. However, both defenses held firm.
As the second half began, the rain started tapering off and the cool front settled in. Junior Tu-lanh Criscuolo had a big impact on the field with her communication throughout the game, and in this game, it was crucial. But it wasn’t her communication alone that helped in this victory. Her attacking kept the Lyme-Old Lyme defense challenged. Nine minutes into the second half, Criscuolo received a fantastic pass from Freshman Addison Burr and was about to break away. Criscuolo was tripped just outside the eighteen. This set up a set piece for Senior Julia Favalora.
Favalora (photo above) capitalized on the set piece by striking the ball over the defensive wall and hitting the upper left corner of the goal. This was Favalora’s third goal of the season for the Cougars.
Other key contributors to the HK attack were Freshman Maddie Sanderson, Junior Emmy Kehlenbach and Senior Captain Leah Chester.  I was proud of the team’s performance today. We started fast and finished strong versus a good team with lots of energy in a tough place to get results. HK now moves to a record of 2-2-1. They now hit a part of the schedule that continues to be away for the next four games.
Photo by: Carin Napoletano
